Residents oppose Fairview Village rezoning proposal
As the real estate market has softened, Fairview Village has made an intrusive move to buy up residential property in a single-family neighborhood. They have requested rezoning from the village to build a large, four-building apartment complex containing 32 units across from their main campus.

At a recent meeting called by Fairview Village to address its neighbors’ concerns, their chief financial officer declined to address the building density issue as well as their plan to push ahead with their rezoning efforts. In addition, they expressed their intention to extend their apartment building concept as properties became available north and south of their Lynn Gremer Court property. Currently, they have purchased an additional five residential lots on Davane Lane and two large lots adjoining Downers Grove Community Church at Fairview and 66th Street. These lots reach deep into the community and abut an established residential community. The incremental creeping expansionist plans of Fairview Village begins with the rezoning of Lynn Gremer Court.

If the rezoning is approved by the village, the door will be opened for the transformation of the entire west side of Fairview to multi-family zoning. This rezoning would change the entire character of a lovely established neighborhood. Common sense dictates that when an apartment complex is built at the edge of your lot line, property values decrease. Fairview Village says not so. We vehemently disagree.

Residents recall village assurances made several years ago that the Family Video development at 63rd Street and Fairview Avenue would be the only non-single family development permitted on the west side of Fairview. Times change, but promises should not.
Joy and Ron Detmer, Downers Grove

FISH Pantry gives thanks for Mail Carrier Food Drive
On behalf of the FISH organization, I would like to express our sincere appreciation to the community of Downers Grove for its generosity during the annual Mail Carrier’s Food Drive, held May 10. Nearly 19,000 pounds of nonperishables were collected with the help of the letter carriers. Volunteers who helped collect and sort food include Campus Life, First Presbyterian Church group from Western Springs, Hobson Road Community Church in Downers Grove and our high school football team. This support will help us stock the shelves of those families in need in the coming months.

FISH maintains a free food and clothing closet in the lower level of the Downers Grove Township building, located at 4340 Prince St. Generous contributions from our communities allow FISH to serve many individuals and families on an emergency basis each month. We welcome individuals willing to help as phone volunteers at home or as drivers to a local medical facility during the week.

Requests for assistance are received through the telephone voicemail service at (630) 964-7776. FISH attempts to supplement the work of church, philanthropic or government agencies that administer long-range programs. 

Laurel Bowen, Downers Grove FISH Pantry board member

More needs to be done to protect wolves out west
Is the community aware of the greatest wolf massacre since the 1950s? More than 200 wolves in Wyoming and 700 wolves in Idaho are marked for slaughter. The decision to remove the federal Endangered Species Act protections for all wolves in the northern Rockies will result in destroying most of the estimated 1,500 wolves in the northern Rockies.

Twelve conservation groups are fighting for the survival of wolves in the northern Rocky Mountains. Earthjustice filed a federal court lawsuit challenging the federal government’s decision to remove the northern Rockies gray wolf population from the list of endangered species for the 12 groups.

Wolves need protection from aerial hunting, poisoning, snaring, trapping and other means of more gruesome killing. Poisoned canines cling to life for days, vomiting and shaking before dying violent deaths. Wolves caught in snares chew at the traps, sometimes chewing their own paws off. Trapped wolves can die horrible, slow deaths from dehydration and starvation or even drowning if they drag the trap into a river in an effort to escape it.

Urge Congress to hold Secretary Dirk Kempthorne accountable for his failure to act for wildlife by holding Congressional hearings... It’s Congress’ job to hold the secretary accountable when he fails to do his job.

• There are reports of scientific tampering to minimize endangered animal classification and protection.
• Since Kempthorne’s term started, no new species were listed under the Endangered Species Act.
• Kempthorne is quick to approve harmful oil and gas drilling and other development in sensitive wildlife habitat.

Our representatives and judicial heroes need to come forward now. Please call your representative today to urge for Congressional hearings on Secretary Kempthorne’s failure to protect wildlife.
Kathy Komorowski, Westmont

Remember those who died for our country’s freedom
Men — a great many of them — have died for this country. They have died in the snow, in the jungle, in the sea, in the air. Some died like heroes, some unknown; some old, some poor; Yankee, some Rebel.

Some died without knowing what hit them, others in agony. But they all died.
And to that off land wherever old soldiers go, let us, the living, send a little message in spirit of “Well done. We hope you have peace. You have earned it the hard way.”

As for us, the living, as we reflect on this Memorial Day, let us pray and hope we do not muff the heritage the dead so gallantly left us. This is a big country, a tough country, a rich country and a brave country. We have not been licked yet and the only way individually or collectively, will we ever be licked is to beat ourselves — no other powers can or will do it.

We are our own worst enemy. We argue, rant and rave among ourselves. We all too often drop to low levels — levels of bigotry, jealousy, pettiness, greed and crime against our fellow man. Let us not do any song and dance of why some of us took off from the road of honor and duty and glory. We did.

But at least those of us who have done wrong can have the guts enough to admit to ourselves that we were wrong and that we intend to do something about it.

Let us do it on our own. Let us forget about getting the help of society, of the government, of the church, even of those we love and trust. Let us stand up and be counted as men in a free and brave country. Let us quit talking about being mistreated and misunderstood. Let us stand up and fight and live as men should live.

Men died that we might live. Let us live as well as they died. Our heroic dead can give us strength. Let us pay them our greatest respect and honor by making something of ourselves. Let them not have died in vain.
Larry Sanda, Westmont

ComEd should pay property taxes just like residents
Have you seen your Com Ed electric utility bill lately? Over the past year, DuPage County residents have seen electric rate increases averaging 26 percent with another 10 percent hike possible next year.

Now, ComEd wants to increase your property taxes. Com Ed is challenging DuPage County’s property tax assessment and asking for a 90 percent  reduction on the nearly $2 million in property taxes they pay each year. If successful, this would mean homeowners would see an increase in their property tax bill because all other property tax payers in the county must make up Com Ed’s reduction.

On Com Ed’s Web site, there was no mention of this attempt to reach further into the pockets of DuPage residents, but they do mention this: “At ComEd we not only believe in being a good employer, but also being a good corporate citizen.”

I have a suggestion for them: Double-digit electric rate increases are difficult enough for many DuPage residents. Don’t also increase our property taxes by reducing yours to fund your company. How about supporting the local community by continuing to pay your current property taxes just like other property tax payers.
Paul Fichtner, DuPage County Board, District 1